“There’s still time.”
“For secrets?”
“No.” Mallory laughed. “For us to be friends.” She approached Sasha and stuck her hand out. “How about we start over?”
“Yeah, okay.” Sasha took Mallory’s hand and gave it a good, firm shake. “I’m Sasha Sommers and that baby you’re holding is my daughter, Dorothy.” She winked.
“It’s nice to meet you, Sasha,” Mallory said, winking back. “I’m Mallory, but you can call me Mal if you want.”
Sasha’s face lit up. “Really?”
“Yeah, why not?” She grinned. “All my other siblings do.”
Chapter 7
Mallory was cautiously optimistic about Thanksgiving Day. Everyone slept in a little late, and if she had to guess, it seemed that the entire family was ready to celebrate when they woke the next morning. Mallory was under no illusion that everything would go back to how it was after such a short amount of time, but she was just glad nobody was at each other’s throats.
It also appeared that everyone had silently agreed not to dwell on what had been revealed the day before. They all just wanted to have fun, eat good food, and be happy together—which is exactly what they did that morning.
By the time Mallory woke and joined the festivities, David even put a little bit of coffee flavored liqueur in the pot that was brewing. She took a sip from the mug he handed her and grinned. “Good thinking. This is how we get the day started off right.”
“I thought you might appreciate it.” David leaned in for a side hug. “Did you sleep okay?”
“Surprisingly, yeah. I did.”
“Good.” He drew in a deep breath. “I have to admit, I did a lot of tossing and turning but eventually fell asleep. Yesterday was…”
“Yeah, I don’t really have the words to describe it either,” Mallory replied after her dad went quiet for a bit. “But it seems like everyone is doing okay now, all things considered.”
“Yeah, I think so too. And I talked a bit with your mom last night. It sounds like the two of you have started to work things out, but I know I still have some apologizing to do as well.”
“And I would love to hear your apologies and talk this over with you some more, just not right now. Maybe over the weekend,” Mallory suggested. “Or if it has to be today, then you’re going to have to pour some more of that liqueur in my mug first.” She winked.
“No, that’s okay,” David said with a chuckle. “We can wait until the weekend. There’s no rush. Hey—any chance we’ll get to see James today?”
“I hope so,” she said, no longer concerned about her family knowing how much she liked him. They were going to give her a hard time whether she was honest with them or not anyway. “But I’m not sure how busy he’s going to be. He’s helping his aunt with a big Thanksgiving meal since this is the last year she’ll be able to celebrate at home.”
“I see. Well, if you get him on the horn, tell him that everyone’s invited over here if they feel like keeping the party going after they eat.”
Mallory grinned. “I’ll make sure he knows that. Although I have a feeling his aunt and all her friends are probably going to call it an early night.” Mallory heard a car pull up to the driveway and a few seconds later, a door shut. “Who’s that?”
“Probably Chris.”
“Oh, right! Chris is coming today!” Her eyes widened. “Did Ariel get a chance to talk to him?”
“I’m not sure,” her dad admitted. “I don’t remember her calling him last night and she only woke up a few minutes before you, so—”
The front door swung open and Ariel’s tall, shiny-faced husband waltzed in wearing his Sunday best. “Hey there!” He cheerfully greeted Mallory and David, going in for a big hug thatencompassed them both. He breathed in and then took another sniff in the direction of Mallory’s mug. “Oh, starting early I see. I like the way you think.”
“If you’d had the day we had yesterday,” Mallory said with a laugh, “you would understand.”
He frowned at them both. “What? Did I miss something?”
Ariel appeared at the end of the hall with a giant smile on her face. “You missed a lot,” she said, running to give her husband a hug. David and Mallory stepped aside. Ariel crashed into him like it had been years since they’d seen each other and Chris lifted her off the ground. “But it’s okay. We’ve got time to fill you in.”
Chris was beaming when they separated, and it was like Mallory was seeing the two of them for the first time. She’d always had her opinions on her sister’s marriage, especially the fact that Chris wasn’t around as much as he should be—but looking at them now—she saw so much love. Maybe it was from what she learned about her parents, or because of what happened with James, but it was like her blinders had come off. It was the same later in the morning when she caught a glimpse of Taylor and Erica, laughing together in a corner of the kitchen. Even when her parents sat beside each other at the dining room table and spoke about how grateful they were that their kids had grown into such amazing, intelligent, and patient people, Mallory felt a deep warmth in her chest.
All these people in her life had opened themselves up to love, and they’d been rewarded for it. Her parents had a lifelong friendship that would stand the test of time in a way their marriage couldn’t. Taylor and Erica were getting ready to expand their family in whatever way the universe saw fit for them. Ariel's husband was taking a step back at work so that the love of his life could chase her dreams, letting them both start a new chapter.
